INTRODUCTION
• We are closing in on Christmas, are your credit cards smoking from all the use they are getting?
• Do you ever look around your with amazement at all the stuff we have?
• It is funny to see all the television ads trying to get us to see that we need something else to add to the pile of stuff we already have.
• The Christmas season unfortunately can bring a lot of stress on people as they charge up what they cannot afford so they can buy more stuff for people.
• This is not gong to be one of those sermons designed to make you feel like dirt if you have things.
• During the busy and for some expensive Christmas season, I would like for us to ponder something for a moment.
• SLIDE #1
• Do you realize we cannot take it with us when our time on earth is finished?
• I was going to wow you with all kinds of statistics concerning the amount Americans spend each year for Christmas and the amount of debt we have and how little we all save.
• I figured out that you do not need to hear a bunch of numbers because most of us are living it out I our lives.
• There are so many things out there that we want and would like to have. There are bigger houses, nicer cars, faster computers (opps), and nicer clothes, among other things. SLIDE #2
• It is so hard not to get caught up in the trap of materialism. The dictionary defines materialism as follows: devotion to material wealth and possessions at the expense of spiritual or intellectual values.
• There is so much out there that it can be hard to keep from focusing our life on having it all.
• I believe that Satan uses the trap of materialism to catch many unsuspecting people. If you get caught in this trap, you will sacrifice your family and your faith as you pursue the goal of getting more and more.
• The thing we need to understand is that when it is all said and done, we can’t take it with us.
• We need to realize there are things more important in life than just accumulating things. Our relationship with Jesus is important as is the relationships we have with our families.
• Is wanting things bad, no, but when it gets out of hand, it is a problem. The one thing we need to be able to do is to determine IF it is out of hand for us.
• Today, I want to try to help you overcome the trap of materialism in your life. We are going to turn to Philippians 4:11-14.
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SERMON
We can learn how to overcome the trap of materialism if we:
I. LEARN THE ART OF CONTENTMENT. (11)
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Before we learn the art of contentment we need to know what contentment is.
1. What does it mean to be content?
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• The dictionary tells us that contentment means to be: quietly satisfied and happy.
• The Greek word translated content in verse 11 appears only here in the New Testament. In extra-biblical Greek it was used to speak of being self-sufficient, having enough, or not being dependent on others. One ancient writer used the word in reference to a country that supplied itself and had no need of imports. True contentment comes only from God, and enables believers to be satisfied and at ease in the midst of any problem. (MacArthur NT Commentary)
• During Paul’s day the word “content” was used by philosophers o describe the independence that wisdom gave a person.
• Paul changed the idea into the independence that dependence on Christ give us.
• I verse 11 Paul tells is that he content no matter what the circumstances. For Paul, his satisfaction and happiness in life was not dependant on what was happening around him. Paul was in prison when he wrote this letter to one of his favorite churches!
• Can you imagine being happy while being in prison, much less being there for Jesus?
• There are a lot of forces out there standing in the way of our contentment.
• We are told to never be satisfied with what we have, never satisfied with where we live.
• Being content does not mean that we do not try to do things that will cause us to grow, but it means that we have all we need to do what God ants us to do. We do not worry about having more and more or having what other people have.
• I used to really struggle with this issue when it came to material things. Cars were a particular weakness for me. It used to drive my wife crazy when I would get in one of those moods.
• God taught me to be content, or satisfied with what I had. For me, it was such a good feeling to be satisfied.
• Does that mean I would not liked to have had a new car? No. What is means is getting another car was not the driving force in my life any longer.
• I was willing to accept what God blessed me with.
• It has been kind of funny for me since I learned this. God has more than taken care of me in this area. Not that cars are important to God, but for me, it was a way for Him to show what contentment can do for you.
• I have had 3 cars totaled out by the insurance company in the last seven years. Each time I seem to end up with a better car without having to go into debt to get it. By the way, only one of the totals was my fault. AND I WOULD NOT ADVISE YOU TO CRASH YOU CAR EITHER.
• Wouldn’t you like to feel a sense of peace within you instead of feeling like you have to keep up with everyone else who is eyeball deep in debt?
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2. Contentment is an acquired taste.
• Concerning contentment, notice what Paul says, “I have LEARNED to be content.
• Contentment is an acquired taste. There are some things in life that when you first taste them you may not like them too much.
• Being able to be content is an acquired taste. To me it would be like eating beets. Those things are nasty tasting to me. For a person to enjoy them, it would have to be an acquired taste. After eating them for a period of time, you learn to like them.
• If you have been around little babies, what do they do when they want something? They ask politely right? NO, they scream, cry, and fuse. They do not stop until they get what they want. Then when they want it again, it starts all over.
• By the way, how many of you with teens see the same cycle?
• We are not born content, we need to learn it.
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3. Contentment comes with maturity.
• One of the blessings of maturing is that you will find that contentment seems to follow maturity.
• You get to a point in your life where you realize what is important and what is not. You start to realize what gives you joy and what is temporary.
• It is not like you are giving up on having things, you just get to the point where you are not consumed with accumulating things, you realize it is not worth sacrificing your relationship with God or your family for the sake of stuff. Mark 8:36
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We can learn how to overcome the trap of materialism if we:
II. LEARN HOW TO LIVE WITHIN OUR MEANS. (12)
Look at verse 12.
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1. Learn to live with little.
• Paul says that he learned how to get along with humble means.
• When first got into full-time ministry, I took a church that could not pay very well.
• I was making less money than I had ever made in my adult life. God taught us how to get by on what we had. We learned some very humbling lessons during that time.
• If you have little, then you need to learn how to make it on little. SLIDE #13
• Mother Teresa was quoted as once saying, “You will never know that Jesus is all you need until Jesus is all you have.”
• If you cannot be content with little, you will not be content with a lot either.
• Living on little takes creativity and dependence on Jesus.
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2. Learn to live with plenty.
• How many stories have you heard about former lottery winners who went broke or whose lives seemed to be ruined by the sudden influx of wealth?
• Why did they have trouble? There are many reasons, but one of them concerns the issue of being content.
• If you cannot be content with what you had, when you have more, it will never be enough. (We will talk about another reason for this in a minute).
• It does not matter how much money a person has, if you do not learn how to live on it, you will never make it.
• Living on with plenty would seem to be easy, but for those who do know how, it is not.
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3. Learn how to manage what you have.
• This is the second reason some of those lottery winners lost it all, if you cannot manage little, you will never be able to manage a lot.
• One of the things that helped me out was realizing what I have comes from God. When I realized this, then I decided I needed to put Him first in my money management.
• God will not bless what is not His! When your money is yours, when your possessions are yours, He will not bless them.
• When you understand your money is His, you will manage it differently than if you think it is yours alone. I encourage all of you to honor God with your money and you will not be sorry.
• If you cannot commit a tenth of your income right now, start with what you can and then vow to God that as you see His blessing, that you will increase your giving until you are where you need to be.
• If you can live within your means, you will be able to fight off the trap of materism!
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We can learn how to overcome the trap of materialism if we:
III. LEARN REAL SECRET OF SUCCESS. (12-13)
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1. Understand who takes care of you.
• Paul speaks of discovering the secret of being able to be content. What do you think that secret is? Look at verse 13. Phil 4:13 CLICK #17
• When look at the context of this statement, it is evident that Paul is telling us that Jesus can give us the strength to do what Paul has described in the previous verses.
• The secret of real success is understanding who really takes care of us. It is Jesus who gives us the strength to do what seems like it is impossible.
• You can do it and you can do it through Him!
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2. Keep you priorities in correct order.
• When you know who takes care of you and who you serve, make sure your priorities reflect that. You parents with young children, they are not going to be young forever. Don’t work more than you need to so that you can have stuff you do not need.
• Don’t’ sacrifice your family and your faith on the alter of possessions.
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3. It’s a wonderful life!
• Quit looking at the glass as half-full and enjoy your life. Sometimes we do not get a good hand dealt to us, play it the best you can and see what God does with it. SLIDE #20
• George Bailey lived a life that he was not happy with. All his friends were leaving Bedford Falls to achieve their dreams and here is George stating in Bedford Falls to run his fathers broken down Savings and Loan. George is contemplating taking his life when an angel gives George his wish of never being born.
• In the clip we are going to see, George learns a lesson on being content.
• He learns that there are things more important than material possessions.
• PLAY CLIP ON DVD PLAYER. HIT PLAY (YOU MAY NEED TO DO IT TWICE TO GET THE SCREEN SAVER OFF) CLIP WILL STOP ITSELF>
CONCLUSION
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• It is so easy to get caught in the trap of materialism. It is a trap that will drain the life out of us one purchase at a time.
• This trap will cause you to look back with regret because of the time wasted chasing after things that are not important.
• Just remember, you can’t take it with you. What you take with you is your relationship with Jesus.
• You will find the things that give you joy is your relationship with Jesus and your relationship with your loved ones.
• Don’t sacrifice your family and faith at the alter of materialism!
